Reynolds holds up to Eagles’ pressure

Reynolds Raider Rachel Scarpelli proved to be the Eagles’ most worthy adversary throughout the varsity girls’ basketball game Tuesday night in the Hood River Gym. Scarpelli, who finished with 27 points, dominated the court, scoring over half her team’s points to lead the Raiders to a 50-38 victory.

Leading the way for the Eagles was Chelsey Elliott and Abby Walters, with 10 points each.

The Hood River girls, now 3-2 overall, fell to an early deficit in the first quarter and they did not attempt a shot within the opening minutes of the game. They gained footing, however, and made a comeback in the quarter to bring the score back to within two by the end of the first at 15-13, Reynolds.

The Eagles went cold in the second quarter, scoring only three points to the Raiders’ eight for a 23-16 halftime score.

Three pointers proved to be the game’s deciding factor, as the Raiders drained eight compared to Hood River’s two, which pans out to an 18-point difference in scoring outside the paint. Reynolds was also deadly from the foul line, finishing with 16 of 20 from the line. Scarpelli was 11 for 12 from the charity-stripe.

The Eagles made a comeback in the third to take their first lead of the game by two points, much to the delight of the local crowd. A descent came fast, however, and the Raiders made a couple key three pointers in the final minute of the quarter to retake the lead by eight going into the fourth.

In the stretch, the Eagles were caught playing catch-up. Their late-game foul strategy didn’t pay off, as Reynolds kept high free-throw percentages until the end.

“We had some inside scoring issues and just getting shots off was a task,” Coach Phil Hukari commented. “Down the stretch we just did not have enough fire power … Some positives were that our press was very effective for the first time this season, which is a good sign for the future. Also, the defense worked hard, which was the reason for our two comebacks.”

Following Elliott and Walters’ 10 points was Meredith Danko with five, Jamie Abbott and Mariah Herman with four, Brianne Rowley with three and Kaitlin Bauld with two.

The girls travel to Bend this weekend to take on league rivals the Bend High School Bears on Saturday afternoon. They don’t return home again until Dec. 30, when they will play Madison High School; varsity starts at 7 p.m., JV at 5:15 p.m.